Labyrinthine Heart (Only For Forever)
by FantasyandHistory
Summary: Facing heartbreak and loneliness, single mum Sarah has begun to stop believing in magic and fairy tales and happily ever after, only holding onto a glimmer of hope of it for the sake of her young daughter, Gaby. But when Gaby goes missing, Sarah finds herself surrounded by fantasy - almost too close for comfort... (Full Summary inside!) (JarethxSarah)
1. Dedication

Hello and welcome to yet another new story from me! ;) In my recent obsession with David Bowie, I discovered this movie, and fell in love with it! It's a very me movie: fantasy, adventure, David Bowie, great music, magic, and a very attractive bad-boy...

And thus I got inspired! Here's a love story for Jareth - hope you enjoy! ;)

Here's a full summary:

**For Toby, it's just a story, too distant to tell whether or not it holds any truth. For Sarah, it's a vivid memory, always looming close by...**

**Facing heartbreak and loneliness, single mum Sarah has begun to stop believing in magic and fairy tales and happily ever after, only holding onto a glimmer of hope of it for the sake of her young daughter, Gaby. But when Gaby goes missing, Sarah finds herself surrounded by fantasy - almost too close for comfort. **

**Nineteen years after their adventure with the goblins, Sarah and Toby must return to the Labyrinth and face the force that has been haunting them all this time. **

**This story serves as a sequel to the film and delves deeper into the question of why Jareth steals away children. (JarethxSarah)**

I do not own anything! Except for my characters and storylines! :) Thanks and enjoy!

* * *

Dedication

This story is dedicated to the wonderful and talented David Bowie who gave us Jareth and many other wonderful characters and equally wonderful music! Much love from a big fan!


	2. One

One

"Where is all this glitter coming from?" Sarah swore everywhere she looked, she saw the silver flecks, catching the light, flickering and sparkling. Almost magically, some might say.

"Hoggle brought it," Gaby answered without hesitation.

Hoggle. The imaginary friend. One of the many imaginary friends. Bless Gaby and her wild imagination.

"It's the Goblin King's! He loves glitter!"

"Naturally."

"Hoggle says glitter is the Goblin King's favourite!"

"Yes..." She never should have let Gaby get her hands on that book. But as soon as Gaby saw the embossed red leather cover, with the word she couldn't pronounce in gold lettering, _The Labyrinth_, she had been intrigued, and begged Sarah to read it to her. Sarah had given in, eventually, despite knowing she would regret it.

And she did, of course.

What harm could a story do? A lot, as she herself had learned.

"Well, let's clean it up, or it will make a mess." It already was messy.

While they scooped up the glitter, Gaby continued describing her friends, nothing Sarah hadn't heard before.

"Hoggle. He likes riddles. And jewelry."

_Yes, I know._

Gaby had made some beaded jewelry for her friends. Sarah hadn't seen the jewelry since Gaby made it, so she didn't know where it had gone.

"And Ludo is big and hairy, and gives good hugs!"

"I see." _Yes, very good hugs._

This was a regular occurrence, though it seemed that the stories were becoming more and more extravagant.

And then there were times like:

"Mum, can we buy some dog treats?"

"Why?"

"Cause Didymus has a dog, Ambrosius, and I want to get him treats!"

The story just kept getting wilder and wilder, more and more lifelike - this is what Sarah had feared. Gaby sure had an imagination, taking after her mum in this way, so it was completely natural for her to become so heavily engaged in a story like this. In fact, it was the perfect story for a wildly imaginative mind.

"Honey, you look exhausted." Sarah's friend Caroline expressed her concern often.

"That would be because I am. But it's fine, really. It's a good sort of exhaustion." After all, this was her daughter she was talking about, her family. She loved Gaby so much - but even imaginative Sarah was beginning to feel like Gaby's fantasies were starting to go too far.

"Okay, good, just checking in."

"Of course, thank you, as always."

Caroline was always generous and had helped and supported Sarah a lot during her single-motherhood.

"Oh, and before I forget, my cousin has a friend-"

"Not interested, Carol."

* * *

"Mum, you scared them all away!" Gaby cried when Sarah peeked her head into Gaby's room to tuck her in and say goodnight.

Her reaction startled Sarah. "Scared who all away?"

"The goblins!"

"I thought you were reading before bed."

"I was! I was reading aloud to them."

"Ah, I see."

"But then they ran away cause they were scared of you."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm not really that scary am I?"

Gaby giggled. "No. They just don't like strangers."

"I see..." But she wasn't a stranger to them, at least not all of them.

"Jareth doesn't let them leave the castle often, so they don't meet new people very much."

"Ah. He doesn't sound so nice, this Jareth." _He's a real jerk, in fact. _

"Mum, don't say that! He could be listening!"

"I don't care if he hears me." _Let him hear for all I care. _ Sarah was about to take a seat on the edge of Gaby's bed when she noticed the bedroom window was open. "Did you open the window?"

"The goblins did. That's how they came in and went out."

Looked like Sarah would have to have a talk with her daughter about leaving the widow open at night, but she decided to save that conversation for the morning.

Instead, she got up and went to close the window, becoming startled when a shadow flashed by outside. Peering out, she saw it was a barn owl who had been perched in their apple tree. The bird's movements rustled the whole tree as the owl took flight.

"What is it?" Gaby asked, noticing her mum jump.

"An owl. It startled me."

"Where?!" Gaby jumped out of bed and raced over to join Sarah by the window.

"It's gone, it flew away."

"Aww, I missed him." Gaby leaned her head out the window. "Goodnight, Jareth," she whispered, just loudly enough for Sarah to hear.

Sarah shut the window, perhaps a little more forcefully than she intended. "Okay, time for bed." She checked to make sure the window was locked, just to be sure.

* * *

"Rough morning?" Caroline asked the very flustered-looking Sarah when she raced into work with barely a minute to spare the next morning.

"A little - Gaby insisted on making extra snacks for her goblin friends, then we were almost late to school, and, in turn, very almost late for work." Sarah threw down her bag and shrugged off her coat. "But, just made it, thankfully."

Carol chuckled. "She's still into the goblins, huh?"

"Always. Should I be worried?"

"She's only six. It's common for kids to have imaginary friends."

"I know. I just don't want her to start relying on them too much, you know? She needs friends, real friends," she added, even though it hurt to say. Coming from her own big-imagination background, Sarah knew just how hurtful it could be to have someone call your imaginary friends unreal, especially at Gaby's age. This had happened to Sarah countless times throughout her own childhood.

"Has she had any trouble making friends at school?"

"Well, she talks a lot about her classmates, so I don't think so. Sometimes it's easy to forget I was just like that as a kid. Then, I grew up, and reality hit. I don't want the same to happen to her."

"Happens to all of us, I'm afraid. Sooner or later."

"Yeah..." Sarah moved over to the filing cabinet by the window. In the tree outside, something caught her eye:

A barn owl.

If she wasn't mistaken, the same one from their apple tree last night.

"Hey Caroline, do you know if barn owls are common in this area?"

Carol shrugged. "No clue. Why?"

"Cause this is the second time I've seen one. Never noticed them before." She met eyes with the bird, it's intense gaze locking onto her own, and she had to look away.

_Wow, this took me a lot longer than I'd hoped! Sorry for the delay, I've been focusing on my other stories lately, but really wanted to get this one started! :) Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story and I hope you enjoyed! :)_


	3. Two

Two

Rent on their apartment was overdue, and Sarah couldn't pay it, not even with having taken on extra shifts at work. She had wanted to keep the apartment so badly, to show that she could.

But, she had to face the facts: they could no longer afford the apartment - their family apartment. What was supposed to have been their family home.

And so, she and Gaby were moving in with Dad and Irene and Toby - temporarily.

Dad and Irene were currently away on holiday, so Toby helped Sarah and Gaby move their belongings into the house - which, admittedly, wasn't very much.

"Uncle Toby!" Gaby rushed to hug the young adult when she and her mom arrived at the house.

"Hey Gabs! How's it going?" Toby knelt down to give his niece a hug.

"Good! We're all moving in together!" Gaby seemed to be the most excited about this new - and temporary - arrangement.

"Yes, we are. Thank you so much for doing this," Sarah told her brother.

"Hey, don't thank me. This is Dad and Mom's house, I just live here. But it's good to have you home."

"Thanks."

"And, maybe now that you and Gaby are here, they'll stop bugging me about college."

Sarah chuckled. "Regretting taking a gap year yet?"

"Not quite yet, but if they keep nagging me, I just might."

"College is fun-"

"Oh, not you too."

"I'm just saying, Toby."

Toby shrugged. "You used to be a lot more fun."

* * *

"So, here I am, in my thirties and with a daughter of my own, and back at home living with my dad, step-mom, and my brother," Sarah sighed, after recalling the whole move to Caroline. "It's not fair."

"No, you're right, it's not. On the bright side though, you won't have to worry about paying rent for a while."

"True, but I really don't want to stay with them for too long. We all have our own lives now. And I don't want to be a burden to them."

"I'm sure you're not." Then Caroline grinned. "I may just have something to cheer you up."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Oh, I can only imagine."

"So, my cousin's roommate, Anthony, Tony for short-"

"Caroline-"

"Please let me finish! He's single too, and I think you would really like him! And he loves kids, and I just know he would adore Gaby! I think you two should meet."

"Go on a date, you mean."

"Yes. But once you're all settled of course."

Sarah sighed and opened her mouth to protest, but then closed it again. Instead, she said, "You know what? What the heck - sure, I'll go on a date with him."

Caroline blinked back. "Really?!"

"One date."

"Wow, I really didn't think you'd say yes. This is so exciting!" She rummaged around on her desk, searching for a pen and paper. "I'll give you his number so you can set something up!"

* * *

"Ugh, what am I doing?" It was Friday evening, shortly before her date with Tony, and Sarah was having major doubts.

"So, you're actually going on a date," Toby remarked.

"Yeah, looks like it."

"That's great. Caroline's doing, I imagine?"

"Oh, yes. And no, it's not great, this is a mistake - I'm not ready to introduce a potential partner into Gaby's life," she cried, suddenly realizing what a horrible idea this really was.

"Just because you were never fond of your step-mother doesn't mean Gaby won't love a step-parent," Toby reminded her.

"I do like your mom-"

"I know, but as a mother figure to you."

"And, not only that, but I'm not ready to introduce a potential partner into _my own_ life..."

"Those are just the usual pre-date nerves," Toby assured her. "And remember, this is just the first date where you're meeting each other for the first time. Doesn't mean you're committing to anything."

"I know, it's just been so long since I've done this..."

"I know, but you'll do great! And also remember: just because it didn't work out before, doesn't mean you've lost all your chances. Who knows, this Tony guy could be 'the one'."

"I'm not so sure I believe in all that anymore."

"Well, maybe he'll help change your mind."

"Maybe. But this isn't a fairy tale."

"No, but maybe it could be."

"When did you become the romantic?"

"When did you stop being the romantic?"

"You know when."

"Wow - Mummy, you look like a princess!" Gaby appeared in the doorway, breaking apart the siblings' argument. She was dressed in a princess dress herself, one of Sarah's own old costumes that she had spent hours playing in as a child, and was now much-loved and much-used by her daughter.

"Oh, thank you-" Sarah looked down at her simple black dress and boots. "But if anyone is a princess here, it's you." She leaned down to give Gaby a hug.

"Do you think you'll fall in love tonight, Mummy?" the girl asked.

Sarah was thrown off by her question. "I-I don't know..."

"I hope you do! I hope I fall in love someday too."

"Oh, you will," said Sarah.

"You could say it with just a little more enthusiasm," mumbled Toby.

Sarah kissed the top of her daughter's head. "You be good for Uncle Toby."

"I will!"

"And you'll go to bed early."

Now Gaby's smile fell. "What?!"

"Yes, that's the rule when you're with a babysitter."

"It's not fair!" cried Gaby.

Toby laughed. "She's definitely your daughter."

* * *

If Sarah had been nervous before leaving the house, she was overwhelmingly nervous when she arrived at the restaurant.

She was early, quite early, so she sat at their table for two, waiting, wondering, and worrying.

She checked her watch, seeing she still had roughly twenty minutes before she and Tony were supposed to meet. How early was she?

At the ten-minute mark, she started keeping lookout for her date - he could arrive at any minute now.

Her nervous thoughts were suddenly broken apart by the ring of her cellphone, which startled her so much she jumped. She really must have been absorbed in her thoughts.

The caller I.D. said it was Toby.

"Sarah!" She jumped again when her brother spoke as soon as she answered the call.

"Toby?"

"I don't want you to panic, even though I know you will..."

"Yes, already panicking."

"It's Gaby-"

"What about her?!" Sarah practically flew out of her chair.

The fear in Toby's voice was chillingly clear. "I can't find her."

_I know I've changed things up a bit! Instead of my OC, I've decided to focus this story on an older Sarah :) I thought this would help raise the stakes as she has a past with Jareth and the Labyrinth, of course, and there was already a certain implied chemistry between her and Jareth ;) _

_Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :)_


	4. Three

Three

Sarah was out of the restaurant and back in the car on her way home within minutes, her worries about her date, let alone the date itself, long forgotten.

_Gaby's fine, _she kept trying to tell herself, despite the racing of both her mind and her heartbeat. She was probably just hiding, playing a trick on her uncle, for which Sarah would give her a stern talking to.

She drove as fast as the speed limit would allow - even a little faster. Being pulled over by the police for speeding was the least of her worries at the moment.

It had started to rain while she was in the restaurant - she had been staring out the window at the steady drizzle while trying to calm her nerves over her date. But now it was a steady downpour, and windy on top of that, making for quite the storm.

Sarah was struggling to see out the windshield, the windshield wipers whipping back and forth across the glass to clear it of the rainwater, but she did see when something - a large bird, it looked like - swooped in front of her.

Sarah gave a cry, slamming on the brakes. She sat, still and silent in the middle of the road for a moment before pulling the car to the side of the street and jumping out into the rain.

The bird seemed to have disappeared - it was nowhere in sight.

Sarah jumped back in the car and continued on her way.

She had been certain the bird had been the owl.

* * *

Toby was standing on the front porch awaiting her return when she pulled into the driveway minutes later.

"Where the hell did this storm come from?" he yelled over the downpour and howling of the wind as they both rushed into the house.

"Any sign of her?" Sarah cried as soon as they set foot inside.

"No, I've practically torn the house apart. She's not here. I thought - hoped - she was hiding somewhere, but she's not."

That was what Sarah had been hoping for as well.

"Where did you last see her?"

"She was running around the backyard in your princess dress - I was readying her dinner, so I was watching out the window. I literally turned around for a second and she was gone." Toby's voice was just as panicked as she felt. "She seemed to be chasing an owl-"

"Owl, what owl?!" Sarah spun around.

Toby was clearly taken aback. "I don't know, some barn owl that was flying around the backyard-"

Sarah's heart instantly sank - she hadn't wanted to believe it, but, deep down, it was just as she had feared.

"I'll kill him."

"I'm sorry, what?" cried Toby.

"I know where she is."

"Where?"

"Or who she's with."

"Who? Sarah? Should I call the police?"

"No, no they won't be able to help us."

"Uh, I'm pretty sure that's their job-"

"Shh!" Sarah suddenly shushed him, upon hearing a faint rustling.

"What?" She was clearly confusing poor Toby.

"Do you hear that?" The rustling had grown steadier now, and louder. Now, not only was it a rustle, but overlapping voices as well.

Both jumped when pots and pans and cupboard doors in the kitchen began to rattle, as though something was disrupting them. They could now clearly hear giggling.

"Is someone in the kitchen?!" Toby whisper-hissed, looking extremely uncomfortable.

Sarah had a good feeling of who it was.

The voices grew louder, an assortment of giggling, hissing, and chatter.

At the next sign of movement out of the corner of her eye, she dove forward, catching something as it moved under the rug. That something now struggled in her arms, giving a shrill cry - a small goblin.

"Where is she?! Where is she?!" Sarah demanded, struggling to keep her hold on the little creature.

The goblin's beady little eyes fell upon Toby. "Baby! Baby!" he cried while flailing his little arms.

"Gah! What the hell is that?!" Toby cried, jumping away.

"He's not a baby anymore! Where is my daughter?! Where is she?!"

"Castle! Castle!"

"How do we get there? Tell me!"

"Uh, S-Sarah..." Now Toby was shaking.

When she saw what he was pointing too, Sarah gasped. Her grip on the goblin fell away and he slipped from her grasp, rushing off and disappearing within seconds. The kitchen had grown silent once again, signalling the other goblins had vanished as well.

Sarah got to her feet. A long shadow stretched down the hallway - displaying wild long hair and a spiky cloak.

He was here.

The shadow remained still for a moment before disappearing down the hall, as though whoever's shadow it was was moving, despite she and Toby only seeing the shadow, not the person it belonged to. This was all the more sinister.

Sarah wasted no time in following the shadow until it disappeared beneath the closet door at the end of the hall.

Sarah reached out and turned the knob, swinging the door open.

It wasn't the closet she found inside. Instead, they now faced the inside of a castle.

_Jareth himself will appear in the next chapter, yay! :D _

_Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :)_


	5. Four

Four

"Uh, well, this is definitely not our linen closet," Toby remarked.

The closet doorway had led them into a stone hall, torches lining the walls. Up ahead, another doorway stood, the old, Medieval-looking door open just a crack, letting in some light to the dim hall, sparkling off the glitter that was sprinkled around them. Laughter and voices could be heard from that next doorway. The shadow they had been following was nowhere to be seen - yet, anyways.

"Sarah," Toby whispered when she took a step towards the door.

"Shh," she whispered back, nodding for him to follow her.

Slowly they approached the door, the overlapping laughter and voices only growing the closer they got.

Sarah reached out and pushed the door open gingerly, it giving a faint creak as she did so, and she and Toby stepped through the doorway.

The laughing stopped abruptly and dozens of beady little eyes fell upon them. Toby cursed and jumped back.

They had stepped into the throne room, bustling with goblins of all shapes and sizes, who gasped upon seeing the siblings. The throne itself however, sat empty and untouched.

"Well... Well, well, well..." A low voice crooned, followed by an equally low chuckle that seemed to echo throughout the room, off the stone walls and back to them. "And what have we here?" The goblins began to shift as someone made their way through the crowd of them.

Heeled boots clicked upon the stone floor while a long, dark cloak dragged behind. Wild hair bounced with every step.

Sharp teeth revealed themselves when the figured smiled. His different coloured eyes, one blue and the other brown, sparkled brightly.

"Hello, Sarah. Welcome back. We've missed you." Jareth grinned, a chuckle rumbling deep in his throat. He gave her a warm smile - or the warmest smile the King of the Goblins could muster. Then his sharp eyes fell upon the teenager at her side. "Ah, Toby! Look at you! My how you've grown!"

Toby was speechless.

"Where's Gaby?" Sarah demanded.

"Sarah, Sarah, Sarah... After years of not seeing each other, this is how you greet me?"

"Oh stop with the friendly act. Where is she?"

"She's perfectly fine."

"I don't believe you."

"But she is, I insist. She's off with some of the goblins playing dress-up. Reminds me of you. All your stories and toys and costumes."

"I don't do that, not anymore."

"But you used to. You daughter certainly is a charming young girl - also reminds me of you. You raised her well."

"Thank you, I guess."

"Sarah," hissed Toby, his eyes not leaving Jareth. "What the hell's going on? Who is this guy?"

"Why Toby, you don't remember? It is I, Jareth, King of the Goblins. Welcome to my labyrinth." Jareth gave a sweeping bow.

"Uh, okay then..." Toby turned to his sister. "Why is he acting like he knows us?"

"Because I do, and you know me." Jareth grinned.

"Yeah, that's not creepy at all..."

"Don't change the subject," cut in Sarah. "I want my daughter back. I didn't even wish her away or anything like that. I would never do that."

"No, but still I found her."

"You stole her."

"And so, as the rules go, if you want her back you must solve my labyrinth in order to get her back."

"That's not-"

"Fair. But see, I think it is. Do you want her back?"

"Of course, she's my daughter."

"Exactly, and so how far are you willing to go for her?"

"I would die for her!"

"Very well, then the labyrinth shouldn't be any trouble at all then."

Sarah sighed. "We don't have time for this."

"But you do." Jareth strode forward towards them. Toby took a step back, and while she was tempted to do the same, Sarah stood her ground. "You have thirteen hours-"

"-Thirteen hours to solve the labyrinth, or else Gaby stays here forever. Yeah, I remember how this works."

Jareth smirked. "Yes, and as I recall you said it was a 'piece of cake'. Not so fast though, dear girl. I've made some changes to the terms this time around."

Sarah's heart skipped - she didn't like the sound of that. "What changes?" she dared to ask.

"You have thirteen hours to solve the labyrinth. If you do, you, your daughter, and your brother go home. But if not, you all stay here - and you, my dear Sarah, become my Queen."

Silence filled the room until the goblins started muttering again, choruses of "ohhhhhh!" now echoing around the hall.

Sarah's jaw fell open. "That's not fair!"

He chuckled. "I knew you would say that." Then his smile fell some and his eyes seemed to grow darker, narrower. "You won last time. But this time, I'm upping the stakes."

A long silence followed, Sarah and the king staring each other down.

"You said it yourself Sarah, you don't have time for this. So, what will it be?" Jareth urged her on.

Sarah gritted her teeth, thinking of Gaby. "Fine, I'll do it. But on one condition."

"Name it and we'll see."

"You changed the rules so I should at least get one condition. You give me one of your crystals so that I can watch over Gaby while on my journey."

"I can assure you, Sarah, your daughter is in safe hands."

"I want to be able to see for myself. I'm having a hard time believing you," she sneered.

"You must love your daughter very much."

"Of course I do."

Jareth eyed her for a moment more. "Very well. I accept your condition." He held up one of his round crystals, offering it to her. Before she could take it though, he juggled it a few times before tossing it up into the air, she narrowly missing catching it. "Oh, and despite how lovely you look - and you said you didn't dress up anymore."

"I was on a date."

"Oh, lucky you."

"I'm not sure. I had to leave because my daughter went missing."

"Anyway, I would imagine you'd like a change of clothing before you begin on your journey."

"Oh, aren't you thoughtful."

He chuckled. "Yes, I am." With a wave of his hand, her dress disappeared, replaced by a shirt with billowing sleeves, a long vest, pants, and boots, similar to what she had been wearing the first time she had conquered the labyrinth.

"There, all set for an adventure." Jareth waved his hand again. "Now, tick tock, your time has begun. Good luck, Sarah."

_Yay, finally the Goblin King himself is here! ;) _

_Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :)_


End file.
